Match 15 of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2024) saw Faf du Plessis and co. back-to-back home games as Royal Challengers Bengaluru fell to a 28-run defeat against KL Rahul’s Lucknow Super Giants at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on April 2.
“Ye aaj kal ke bacche” 😅🔥 pic.twitter.com/SGSvzUJmAn
---Advertisement---— Lucknow Super Giants (@LucknowIPL) April 2, 2024
Put to bat first, LSG openers Quinton de Kock and KL Rahul understood the importance of setting a strong foundation early in the innings. However, the departure of local lad KL Rahul at a mere 20 runs was an early setback for them. It was de Kock who took charge, displaying aggressive stroke play and maintaining a commendable strike rate.
Quinton de Kock Fires LSG To 181/5
The South African batsman also reached the milestone of scoring 3000 runs in his IPL career, underlining his significance for various teams throughout the lucrative tournament’s history.
His composed innings of 81 runs off 56 balls provided stability to LSG’s innings. Nonetheless, Lucknow faced a setback with a flurry of wickets during the middle overs, halting the flow of runs. At 16.4 overs, LSG stood at 143/4 following de Kock’s dismissal.
In the fray stepped Nicholas Pooran, who continued his fine form with a quickfire cameo of 40* runs, guiding LSG to a respectable total of 181/5 in their allotted 20 overs. Pooran’s knock also saw him surpass the milestone of hitting 100 sixes in the IPL, achieved in just 62 matches.
In reply, RCB openers Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis got sent back to the pavilion at a collective total of just 41 runs within the powerplay.
Mayank Yadav Shines Again
4 overs, 14 runs, 3 wickets, 24 laser beams 🔥⚡pic.twitter.com/pw5NOSbdpM
— Lucknow Super Giants (@LucknowIPL) April 2, 2024
What followed was a brilliant spell by LSG young gun Mayank Yadav who took 3 wickets for the visitors at regular intervals with his lightning pace. He also went on to better his record for the fastest delivery in this year’s IPL, bowling an impressive 156.7 km/h ball on the night. The young pacer ended up with scintillating figures of 3/14 at an economy of 3.5 runs which proved to be the deciding factor in the 2nd innings.
Mahipal Lomror top-scored for RCB with a good 33-run cameo as RCB saw themselves go winless at home in back-to-back matches.
Also Read: IPL 2024: Quinton de Kock’s 81 Takes Lucknow Super Giants To 181/5 vs RCB